Chu to step down as Energy secretaryEnergy Secretary Steven Chu plans to step down in the weeks ahead, he announced in a letter today. "In the short term, I plan to stay on as secretary past the ARPA-E Summit at the end of February. I may stay beyond that time so that I can leave the department in the hands of the new secretary," Chu wrote. On Saturday, he will become the longest-serving secretary of Energy. Politico (Washington, D.C.)
(2/1)

PTC renewal to prevent massive wind power slump, exec saysThe continuation of the wind-energy Production Tax Credit will help arrest a possible slide in wind turbine orders through 2014, said Vic Abate, vice president for renewables at GE Energy. The number of wind turbine installations may return to about 5,000 to 6,000 megawatts annually through 2014, the level before developers rushed projects at the end of 2012 due to fears Congress would kill the PTC, Abate said. "You could see that kind of average holding, with '13 being a little under the average and '14 being a little over," Abate said. Bloomberg Businessweek
(1/31)

FERC OKs sale of 50% stake in Minn. wind farmEDF Renewable Asset Holdings received authorization from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to sell its remaining 50% stake in the Lakefield wind farm in Jackson County, Minn., to TAQA US Lakefield Holdings. EDF had sold its other 50% interest in the 205.5-megawatt wind farm to MC Lakefield Holdings. SNL Financial (free content)
(1/31)

Court rules against Ralls over blocked wind projectThe U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia tossed out Ralls Corp.'s lawsuit against Terna Energy USA Holdings, the former owner of a wind project whose purchase by Ralls was blocked by President Barack Obama for national security reasons. The court dismissed the lawsuit without prejudice, which means Ralls may file the suit in another jurisdiction. The Oregonian (Portland)
(1/31)

U.K.'s Blue Energy buys RidgeWind for $393MU.K.-based developer Blue Energy agreed to acquire RidgeWind and its wind energy assets in the U.K. from HgCapital for about $393.5 million. RidgeWind has 45 megawatts of wind projects under construction, 132 MW that are shovel ready and a "significant" amount in the pipeline, HgCapital said. Bloomberg Businessweek
(1/31)

Indian firm DLF agrees to sell $53M in wind assets to BharatIndian company DLF signed an agreement to sell a portion of its wind assets in Gujarat to Bharat Light and Power for $52.9 million, DLF said. The decision to sell the assets, with a total capacity of 150 megawatts, is aimed at helping reduce DLF's $4.4 billion debt. Reuters
(1/31)

Brazilian developer may issue $126.1M bonds to fund wind projectsBrazil's Bioenergy Geradora de Energia is planning to issue up to $126.1 million in bonds to raise funds for wind projects with a total capacity of 380 megawatts. The company is considering selling debt after finding an investor for the wind projects, which are expected to $605.5 million, said CEO Sergio Marques. Bioenergy has won contracts for most of the projects to sell electricity at $44.28 per megawatt-hour, and raising the funds would be "very challenging," said Eduardo Tabbush of Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Bloomberg Businessweek
(1/31)

Crafting Your Company's StoryCall it an elevator pitch or your company's story. However you describe it, being able to quickly summarize your business can help you engage with customers, partners and investors. Click here to read Boomtown: Think Like a Startup

Del. lawmaker wants tax incentives for first offshore wind projectsSen. Tom Carper, D-Del., plans to revive a bill that would offer an investment tax credit to the first several offshore wind projects to get off the ground. A proposal backed by Carper in the previous Congress sought to reimburse offshore wind developers for up to 30% of their project cost. The tax incentive would end once U.S. offshore wind projects reach a generating capacity of 3,000 megawatts. The Hill/E2 Wire blog
(1/31)

SmartQuote

Never confuse a single defeat with a final defeat."

--F. Scott Fitzgerald,American writer

These stories were selected and summarized by independent editors at SmartBrief Inc., not by AWEA's staff, and do not represent AWEA positions. They reflect the variety of daily coverage of American wind power.